In some situations, it is important to have a high degree of confidence in sensor results before action is undertaken based on the sensor results. One such example scenario is airbag deployment. To ensure airbags are only deployed where necessary (e.g., when a crash has actually occurred), a high degree of confidence in sensor results is required before airbag deployment. Inadvertent airbag deployment can cause injuries and/or accidents. Additionally, there are many other situations where a high degree of confidence in sensor results is beneficial, including a variety of situations associated with safety (e.g., involving risk of injury or death), etc.
To achieve a high degree of confidence in sensor results, redundancy can be added to sensor systems to ensure that if an event (e.g., crash, etc.) occurs, it is confirmed by multiple independent sources. Redundancy can be achieved through the following: two or more sensors can be located at the same point in the car but attached to different channels, such that each should indicate the event; an on-board sensor can be included on the electronic control unit (ECU) as a redundant sensor; and/or an event verification controller (EVC) that monitors sensor data in parallel to the controller can be included to independently determine whether an event has occurred based on the sensor data.